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Thematic and travel photographyWed, 16 Aug 2017 13:10:04 +0000enhourly1http://wordpress.com/https://colorfullpoly.files.wordpress.com/2017/07/cropped-test-3.png?w=32ColorPixelhttps://colorpixel.org
3232Leon and Porma – EShttps://colorpixel.org/2017/08/15/leon-and-porma-es/
https://colorpixel.org/2017/08/15/leon-and-porma-es/#respondTue, 15 Aug 2017 11:00:20 +0000http://colorpixel.org/?p=1872Continue reading Leon and Porma – ES]]>This trip was taken back on the 1st of May 2017, so not so many details I remember. All I know it had some adventures and also that it was the first time I visit a city outside of Galicia. Since Leon was telling me something (as a name) we booked in a hotel and took the train tickets.

At some point, in the voyage, our train came to a complete halt. When I got out (after a few minutes) to check out why we stopped, I saw another train stopped just in front of us, with its locomotive, heading towards us.

So because even our mechanic did not knew what was going on (there has been something wrong on the next station or just before it), both trains had to stay in this station, for further noticed. So I made photos.

In the end they told us to wait for buses to another station where there will be another train. As it turns out, the buses were for the train in the left (in the image above) and not for us.

We had local Taxis (or cabs) that drove no more than 15 minutes and left us at another train station, where we waited another on hour for the other ones to come with the bus.

The image above, was taken from the train (close to Leon). In Galicia there is no snow, so when I saw this landscape, not so far away from my destination, I set my goal to visit it before heading back home.

As we arrived in Leon, I remembered it was very, very cold. A wind that would move you, and very cold. I know in Vigo it was ok to walk in a hoodie (but perhaps a long shirt would have been the closest comparison. But here was very cold. I knew that more or less from reading the weather app, but the wind made everything more than just a number.

In front of the station (where we arrived) there was the old station, being left without tracks and windows, in preparation to be integrated with the future one.

On road towards the motel, I saw again the mountains, so I knew they cannot be far away.

Due to the fact we arrived at midday, everyone was sleeping, so we had to find the receptionist and after some 20 minutes, we could actually get in the room, and warm ourselves.

First thing we searched for, was one of the famous Chinese stores that are everywhere in Galicia and that would have everything we needed. From there we bought gloves, warm hats and winter scarfs.

Later we saw a bit the Parque de Quevedo that surprised us with the liliput (small) chickens that were free in it. And in big number.

As we crossed the bridge over the River Bernesga we saw the big San Marcos church that was in repair, apart from the Hotel entry.

This building according to Wiki, dates as far as the XII-th century and suffered (like many other big endeavors) lots of changes and remakes.

Today there is also a museum inside as well as an art collection gallery, apart from just the church.

But this church was not the indication, or the reason why I find today (as I write this page) Leon different from it’s surrounding cities.

What is different here, is the fact the new buildings and not just old ones, keep the tradition of detail, color and bricks. Thew all have these elements.

Take for instance this group of buildings from Plaza la Inmaculada. Modern, yet far more interesting then just glass, steel and polystyrene.

This following building was a bit far from my location, and also in a dark position. It looked like Hanging Gardens with its green tint glass and golden reflections from the sun.

So yes, looking at buildings, inside the city, can be like walking into a huge museum. Old and new, beautifully integrated (not everywhere is like this, but most cities lack this anyway)

What was more beautiful was of course the center region.

Archivo historico Provincial Leon. All bricks and huge and high walls. Very impressive.

We went out for a bit to go search for the train that would get us close to the mountains now or perhaps very early in the morning. We headed to north side of the city, where I traced back a line that connects the mountains and the lake with Leon.

We found this small one stopped at the University station. We looked for someone to help us with a program and in the end we had bad news. No more trips for today, just tomorrow, but the problem was that it would mean that we risk to loose the train back to Vigo. So we headed back to the center a bit demoralized. At least I was.

But clouds were building up and soon rain came.

We hided from roof to roof, as the rain was coming and going and the light was perfect for some camera action.

Here is Iglesia de las Ventas.

Basilica de San Isidoro.

Casa Botines and the tourist sightseeing train.

Deputation Provincial de Leon and Casa Botines on the right side.

The center in the night.

Casa Botines in the night.

A local Pub that has a beautiful entry.

Cathedral de Leon, viewed at night. To be honest, we did not knew we will find such enormous cathedral in Leon. At that day, it was the biggest I ever saw.

One trick of getting the moon visible at the same time with other elements is to use gradient filters on the lenses. Zoom in to maximum, so that far objects become magnified and just after that find the angle. In my case I chose one of the cathedrals towers.

Detail shot.

Next morning, we thought to ourselves what to do next. I said that I could pay a taxi to get me just to see the mountains and the lake. So we asked the receptionist and she made some calls. For 50 euros a taxi driver said it will get us there and back to the train station in time.

For 60 km to go and to come back it sounded more than perfect.

So yeah, I got to see this magnificent landscape and the Water Electrical Plant at Porma

On way back at Leon, we had time to eat and to do some more photos.

It truly was a special trip and Leon should be seen again, but this time for more than just 1 day (we thought for 2, but the mountain took some of that time so all we had was one full day).

We definitely recommend Leon as a visit.

MiDe.

Plaza de Toros – Leon Arena

]]>https://colorpixel.org/2017/08/15/leon-and-porma-es/feed/0edited-2171904_FotorcolorpixelorgcathedralCaptură de ecran din 2017.08.16 la 13.09.36edited-0078080_Fotoredited-0160000_Fotoredited-0179712_Fotoredited-0193024_Fotoredited-0262912_Fotoredited-17355776_Fotoredited-0603904_Fotoredited-0647168_Fotoredited-0802560_Fotoredited-0818944_Fotoredited-0858112_Fotoredited-0842496_Fotoredited-0910336_Fotoredited-0969984_Fotoredited-0996096_Fotoredited-1035520_Fotoredited-1089536_Fotoredited-1127424_Fotoredited-1214208_Fotoredited-1282048_Fotoredited-1298176_Fotoredited-1349376_Fotoredited-1369856_Fotoredited-1375232_Fotoredited-1393152_Fotoredited-1540352_Fotoredited-1612800_Fotoredited-1428992_Fotoredited-1459200_Fotoredited-1479424_Fotoredited-1486848_Fotoredited-1514752_Fotoredited-1559552_Fotoredited-1605632_Fotoredited-1626112_Fotoredited-1775104_Fotoredited-1801984_Fotoredited-1826048_Fotoredited-2053120_Fotoredited-1964032_Fotoredited-2171904_Fotoredited-2242560_Fotoredited-2309632_Fotoredited-3345920_Fotoredited-4050944_Fotoredited-4514816_Fotoredited-5664512_Fotoredited-6351616_Fotoredited-6530048_Fotoredited-7327744_Fotoredited-10324992_Fotoredited-10618112_Fotoredited-12132608_Fotoredited-12491776_Fotoredited-13262592_Fotoredited-13630208_Fotoredited-14447872_Fotoredited-15365376_FotorWildlife at Zamans – EShttps://colorpixel.org/2017/07/16/wildlife-at-zamans-es/
https://colorpixel.org/2017/07/16/wildlife-at-zamans-es/#respondSun, 16 Jul 2017 18:13:16 +0000http://colorpixel.org/?p=1599Continue reading Wildlife at Zamans – ES]]>I dedicated a certain level of preparations for this wildlife session. Camouflage t-shirt and pants from Decathlon and a nice brown hat. Oh and also a shoulder pouch to store water and apples (or just a big one). With all of these locket in the closet, I waited for the weekend to come. Put my alarm on Saturday and…

Well, Saturday, at 5:00 in the morning, when the alarm ringed I watched outside and it was to dark (pretty obvious…). So I checked the route and I saw that I would do around 2,5 hours on foot to the location. I started to think about how much of that is actually through forest, and…

And the phone ringed again and it was almost eleven a clock in the morning. During the week that just passed, while being stuck at work, I proposed to myself that at 12, or maximum 13 I should be home so that I don’t stay too much in the sun. Well, that did not happen, so I set a next goal. Wake up at 6 next Sunday and leave by 6:30. I put all my clothes on the chair, the again fully charged battery in the camera, the big 300mm lens in the pouch, a bottle of water in the belt pouch, one washed apple in the pouch, cereals on the table and phone to wake me at 6. I don’t know how… by it was nine when the lucky phone rang again so I jumped, washed and got out. 9,6km of climb in the morning sun on a sunny day in July.

This is the 3rd time I visit this place and as always I start from Hotel and from this very annoying dog.

At some red lights, you stay so much, that you can actually get artistic.

Next, I exit the main city (the one with high apartment buildings) and enter the narrow, full of tight corners and not to forget, climbing streets.

Here I have my first true photo of the trip: A bumblebee! I love these hard-working insects, mostly because they look fat and they can fly just as well as a normal bee. I made the photo with the not so expensive but great Pancake Lens the 24mm from Canon (best lens to have).

After about 2 hours of walking, I stopped to refill my bottle with fresh spring water, and also snap a picture that I hoped it will have a more 3D effect to it.

Ok, so I bring back the lake map.

There is a small road that enters in the woods after you exit the main road. From there you either use Maps.Me or just ask around or just follow the noise of water and you should find this view (see image bellow). For me, this time, the smell of the water indicated that I was close. I never saw this spring so polluted before… So maybe next when I will come it will be that clear water full of colorful dragonflies and butterflies.

Look aside from the spring and you should see this totally awesome stone house:

It looks so great in reality, that every time I take another picture of it, it just feels like I’m missing something.

Then you go up, next to the dam, which is not so interesting (this time I forgot to change lenses to make a photo with it on my way back home, but if I restore my pictures from my crashed HDD, then, there should be a post from my first, very long, hiking in Galicia.)

I saw so many dragonflies, in so many colours, that I actually had a hard time chasing just one with my camera.

The white one was the only one that kept returning, when I would stay still for longer periods of time. In total I spent 20 to 25 minutes just trying actually to get the red and a yellow dragonfly.

So now I am at point 1 on the map, I am pretty bored from the dragonflies photos. I am watching the lake, with the full zoom, and trying to catch birds landing on water.

But I was to far away from them, to get the details like water splashes, or just the wings positions when they fly. So I check the headless white bird. First I thought it was just another seagull. But no, it is (according to the Spanish book) a black-headed gull or Gaviota reidora. Pretty obvious, but on my small screen on my camera, it looked headless.

While I was looking zoomed in, at my camera screen, I saw a black shadow next to the water, at a few meters from me.

It was, of course, an European Mink. Never saw one outside the zoo and to be honest, I was not expected to be so close to me. I found it strange to be so near me, so I moved my position just a bit more far from the place it went hiding and I waited to reappear. But no such thing happened in 10-12 minutes.

Meanwhile this Water Pipit, and 3 other ones were drinking and washing on the shore of the lake, not even at 2 meters from me. I was so focused on the other side and I stood so still that these small birds did not notice me. So when I made the first picture, all 3 just froze.

Since the mink is not coming back to the water, or perhaps he was, but some place else, I moved on with my journey. I was so proud of this one picture (that I saw it was good), that almost nothing seemed to matter.

Now, this white dragonfly (or maybe another one that looks just like the first one) kept following me, so I stopped to make another picture of it, again and again. But unlike other times, I was on full manual focus mode and pushed to get as close as possbile.

On the other shore, there were some people taking horseback riding lessons. Since I did not find the subject interesting (I made better pictures in France) I kept only this frame. No car sound, no plane sound, just water, wind, and flies. I find it very peaceful. Here the water had also an orange tint, but no smell. So how does that the spring has such powerful odour.

But I wasn’t the only one that was enjoying the shade of the trees, also a group 10 fish, were chilling around this old dead tree. Interestingly enough, when one of them decided to change direction, the other ones soon followed. I guess the last one said: come on guys, there is nothing that direction, lets head the other way. And like so, now he was the first in the pack.

Just when I was trying to get a proper picture with more sharp details, I hear branches and water splashes in front of me (more like 10 meters away). Apparently I annoyed with my presence a few ducks, that from far away, not so gently, got away.

So no small ducks, no crazy detail shots, on to the point 2 on my map.

Just on a hair of water (if that is correct) there was this small crayfish. It was so red, that caught my attention. I searched up on the internet and found this on Wikipedia:

“Procambarus clarkii is a species of cambarid freshwater crayfish, native to northern Mexico, and southern and southeastern United States, but also introduced elsewhere (both in North America and other continents), where it is often an invasive pest.”

While this red crayfish was hiding from me, another one was passing just next to my left foot. If I weren’t so careful where I step every time (I love so much my camera) I would definitely step on the poor traveller.

But this fella was so weird. It tried to climb so many things, no wonder he was so “far” from the water, unlike his brother. So he would try to get up on something, then fall on his back, then agitate until his back on his feet, then again. I guess in just these two crayfish I saw the type that stays home and safe and the kind that travels and never settles.

So I got out in the opening, to feel the fresh air and perhaps get some birds (this is why I was here anyway)

Many forests from Galicia and Portugal, have little or no space between trees. Basically where there is something like a route, it is there because somebody made it.
In Romania, you can often get lost because trees have to much space between them, so there is no big trail to follow, just the compass. Yes, occasionally, just like here, there are painted markings of routes, but other than that, is pretty much open space!

I guess I miss thos Alpino type forests.

Then, the sound of an eagle woke me up from my dream. I tried to pin point his position, but to do that I had to stay still and basically tried to hear everything. Like another shout, or other birds that leave one location.

Meanwhile a butterfly landed on a leaf right next to me.

An egg-shaped mushroom was hidden under dead leaves.

After almost 15 minutes of searching and waiting, at point 3 on the map I found the eagle in the sky. It was on a tree that i thought it was, just that he was on a side I could not reach with my camera.

I just could not get a better shot of it… at least to know if it is the Mountain Eagle (Golden Eagle) or not. It looked juvenile anyway, perhaps 1,5 meters in wing spam.

So I got a bit upset of the situation. If I got closer to the tree, perhaps I would have got a better shot. To be honest, this bird was in my mind when I bought the Tamron 70-300mm. It is a huge lens, heavy and for full-frame cameras. Since my camera is an APS-C, the crop factor is 1,6 so the total reach of this lens is 480 mm. Not bad I guess But not enough to reach a flying bird. Next time I dedicate all my time to get closer to these magnificent birds.

So I stopped to catch this small, delicate butterfly to compensate on my other fail.

And another red crayfish.

Galineiro.

Tress that are also at my countryside, back in Romania. A whole forest, just with this type of tree. Then I remembered I have not yet see a squirrel.

In that silent moment, I picked up an acorn from the ground and then I heard someone crunching on something.

An Eurasian otter was eating. It seemed to have a problem at one of his eyes. I even had time to shot a video of it (I just forgot to push record for the most part…).

I saw it going inside the water, and after a few seconds, resurfacing with another red crayfish in his jaws. He ate in my presence 4 of them, then I decided to leave him alone and moved on.

I found one of those subjects that people hate on the internet. A tree that had many deep and organic holes in it.

By this time I got pretty thirsty again and following the sound of a quick water (spring) in the nearby, I stopped to make just this one picture.

It looks so good, that I pictured elves that walked in this Celtic wood, some hundreds of years ago, if not thousands and left everything like this.

Gently jumped over those stones just to get a better look at a green dragonfly.

Under the rocks, illuminated just like you see it now, there was this feather. If only I could have got a better picture of that eagle…

I headed towards the source of the water, to point 4 on my map.

There was the same kind of bird that I saw at Pena in Sintra, Portugal. It is a Jay, that comes from the middle east (this is what the book says, and to be honest it looks just like the drawing). I did not mind too much about the bird, already have a great picture done at Pena.

Other thing cought my attention. Roman like houses.

Of course I replenished my bottle with fresh cold water.

I was so not expecting to see, even here, so far from a road, old buildings, that were river mills.

I sneaked the flash inside so that I can get a glimpse of how it looks likee. Pity I did not get to see the mill in function.

Part of the water was channeled on these canals that ran on top of the houses. Then will flow thru an orifice on the bottom of the construction.

Ano de 1812.

Here we can see how they would stop the water from entering in the channel and in the construction.

On another house, this is the view from bellow, photo made with flash.

And right were I was sitting, these green feathers were resting on a stone, and a fly was on them. I got a bit sad so I started to look for dragonflies. I cannot say I have to many photos of them.

This particular one was trying to show me something artistic I guess and then got angry and opened the mouth . Should I get a macro lens?

Doesn’t it look like leopard skin? Actually these are water spiders. And a whole bunch of them too.

This butterfly (even though I have no picture to prove it to you) was playing with the “angry dragonfly” and 4 more others. All 5 were flying and intersecting and for a second they were resting, but almost never all at the same time. So I made pictures only with the playfull brown butterfly.

With this image, I said goodbye to this place, but promised to return to get a proper photo of that Jay, perhaps while catching a cricket.

Meanwhile, this is a picture of a black dragonfly. I used high ISO and low shutter speed just to get more detail from it. More than this, and the image would get noisy.

From here, I ventured up until point 5, on the map, where there was no trail to follow. Actually after Zamans, there was nothing, like no trail at all. But I knew where was the lake so headed towards it.

I finally made a decent picture of the red dragonfly, remaining the yellow one for the next time.

Now, because I had to get on my belly to many times, to pass from one area to another, loosing my hat in the branches, and hurting my knee and also due to the powerful wet animal smell, I decided to not carry on, so just about point 5 on my map, I headed towards my app (maps.Me) showed me there should be a road and went towards it.

From there I looked just one more time at the lake and the mountain…

It is impossible to understand how much luck I had in just a few hours (5 be more exact) to see so many things, find twice fresh water, find an old encampment, and many more other events.

Now that I write this and also had some time to look up some information I will conclude like this:

My luck was actually not so much luck. In my country, if I would go so incognito, I would find also bears in the forest. But here, just a Mink and an Otter were the biggest mamals around. But why?

I think the answer is the Crayfish. Brought from America in the 70s, it became a pest animal by multiplying a lot and no predator. Since most birds stay in Vigo, next to the millions of pubs and places to enjoy tapas, I think that the locals took an Otter from the zoo, and released it here.

The Otter looked blind from one eye. Also, first time I saw it, it was at 4 or 5 meters from me. Actually just like I said, the ducks were more scared of me than the Mink or the Otter. And those wore more far away.

So in order to control the rising population of crayfish, they introduced a few animals, that actually find the pests delicious.

This is my opinion…

If you felt inspired by this post, then take a silly camera, or just your phone, throw some camouflage colours on you, head to a forest, follow a trail and make no noise.

There is a special boat that goes from Vigo to Illa de Ons and back to mainland just once a day (one full trip) If you get at the port in Vigo, some 15 minutes earlier, you might have the chance to get a seat on top so that you can enjoy the panoramic view.

Inside the bay of Ria de Vigo, the water is calm and many small boats can be seen going to Cangas or to or from the more common attraction: Illas Cies.

As you pass the Costa da Vela, there is a perfect, classic shape Lighthouse: Faro de Cabo Home but also the waves become bigger and bigger.

I have done many other pictures of the area, but the big waves, the high-speed of the boat and a passengers strong smell, made the perfect ingrediens to get sea-sick.

So I will fast forward to the moment I get on the Island itself. Took a big sandwich and lots of water to drink and started to look at the map

To start the hiking we chose the green route, planned to do the yellow and then the red if there is time left.

So here we start the photo-journal with this Catholic Church San Xaquin and the calm road up the hill.

Now there are not more than 80 people living permanently on the island but since 1900, there were at most 500+ inhabitants (in 1955). This explains the many houses that are left abandoned, scattered on the island.

The road is dusty and nicely cleaned of spiky plants, perfect for big groups of hikers or hikers + bikers. There was just a small tractor that was seen on the road, but no ATVs (which is a great news)

Mirador de Fedorentos. A small height fence made out of stones, make it the perfect spot to admire and hear the hundreds of birds that have nests here.

Such is the case of the Yellow-legged gull or Larus michahellis

A surprising sight for us was this beautiful Papilio – Swallowtail butterfly- Papilionidae family. In the image bellow, he was seen at the Mirador. Another one was spotted at the Faro de Ons.[scroll down]

Far on the South side of the island the landscape changes, into this fully covered in green and spiky land with magenta flowers. Many lizards can be heard running from the road and into the darkness bellow the green cover.

Besides the big colonies of Yellow-Legged gulls that stay on the island (notably on the south side) there is (in my opinion) the most interesting place of the island: Buraco do Inferno. A hole in the land (so safe this whole place must be…) shaped by the forces of the ocean (as the brochure says). There are rings to hook the ropes and aid you to descend into the abyss. I was OK just with the sight from outside.

In the image bellow you can see the hole itself, then the nesting place of the gulls, Illa de Onza, Illa de Cies in the distance and even more into the distance, the main continent.

Yellow-legged gull or Larus michahellis [bellow]

The Blue Passion-flower or Passiflora coerulea [bellow]

The Carlina acaulis flower [bellow]

And if you think is hard to get so far away, well for some dads, having to carry the baby stroller was no brainer.

Because the routes are not so long, nor they are tedious, we found ourselves next to the lighthouse in no time.

The blue course, promises to show to the tourists a region populated by lizards and some can also be found on other portions of the island too. Since the vegetation is very abundant but also very low height (max 20cm of ground), spotting these creatures is very hard (in time to catch them on photo). I gave up for the moment.

Because it was time to catch the boat back, we canceled the Blue hiking trail and headed towards the port.

As you wait in the port, look between the rocks in the water, you could spot some Shore Crabs or Carcinus maenas

It is a great place to visit (if a 2 hour journey on a boat is not a problem) and a great place to camp too. With prices starting at 70 euros per night for a 2 person tent (price much lower if you already have a tent) this is also a perfect place for night photography. Since there is no light pollution, a good tripod can turn your night camping experience into a astro-photography delight.

Perhaps I will return, for this unique advantage. Oh and bring battery packs!

MiDe.

]]>https://colorpixel.org/2017/07/08/ons-island-galicia-spain/feed/0edited-9113_FotorcolorpixelorgislandCaptură de ecran din 2017.07.23 la 13.26.46.pngedited-8809_Fotoredited-8835_Fotoredited-8844_Fotoredited-8878_Fotor2016-07-ons-mapaedited-8896_Fotoredited-8899_Fotoredited-8905_Fotoredited-8925_Fotoredited-8934_Fotoredited-9045_Fotoredited-8936_Fotoredited-8948_Fotoredited-8961_Fotoredited-8973_Fotoredited-8993_Fotoredited-9001_Fotoredited-9008_Fotoredited-0479_Fotor_Fotor.jpgedited-9011_Fotoredited-8922_Fotoredited-9051_Fotoredited-9067_Fotoredited-9070_FotorDSC_0551_FotorDSC_0557_FotorDSC_0567_Fotoredited-9075_Fotoredited-9079_Fotoredited-9096_Fotoredited-9113_FotorRegua ->Tua – PT – beautifully back in timehttps://colorpixel.org/2017/07/02/regua-tua-pt-beautifully-back-in-time/
https://colorpixel.org/2017/07/02/regua-tua-pt-beautifully-back-in-time/#respondSun, 02 Jul 2017 18:41:39 +0000http://colorpixel.org/?p=1391Continue reading Regua ->Tua – PT – beautifully back in time]]>Have you ever been with 3 types of trains in the same day (perhaps all 3 classic types)? To get to see the beautiful Douro region, the place where the famous Porto Wine is born, I booked a seat on a beautiful train pulled by a historical steam locomotive. But to get to that I was on a train pulled by an electrical locomotive. And on way back home I took also a diesel train…So yeah this is the great Historical Voyage on Douro.

My voyage starts in Braga so here are some pictures.

When I saw this high-speed train at Porto station, I ran to make a few pictures. But I could not get closer to it in time… As I write this, I have never seen it before, not even in Lisboa.

So lets talk here about the main attraction.

This trip is called historical not just because I will be on a train pulled by a steam train… No! It is about an old route. The work on this line started in 1875 (according to a brochure given in train) and Regua (place of departure) was reached only in 1879 ( I guess the line started in Porto?) .

Keep in mind that the line is very close to the water, and if you are unlucky to not be on the river side (right side as the train moves forward) you will see mostly just rocks, a few landscape for about 5 sec and then rocks again (there is just an exception but more on that later).

So because I knew about the best seats, I planned my trip, almost 1 month in advance, so that I can have the great view. And boy… even that wasn’t enough… Because the train is only on Saturdays and Sundays I opted for Saturday so I won’t be tired at work… But at the CP station they told me only Sunday will get me the river side view. So I went on Sunday…

You know you arrived in Regua when you see the Zorro statue far away, on top of a hill. The huge parcels with grapes, that stretches along the Douro River, can also be seen before arriving at here. So I won’t actually call that a sign.

Also big hotel like boats can be seen from Porto to Regua sailing on the river, so keep your eyes opened at all times, because it is beautiful not just from Regua, but also before that location.

Between arrival at Regua and departure to the next destination, I had some time to kill, so I enjoyed making a few landscape photos and took a cool refreshment at a local next to the river. Pretty fancy and cheap too.

I don’t know what wasp like insect this is, but was so busy cleaning herself that it almost did not notice me.

Back at the station, I saw the carriages already on the tracks, but I didn’t knew how to get on the platform, so I followed the singing band. (cool tip if you have the same problem, because they arrive sooner so you cannot get lost)

There I saw the best view since my childhood: the locomotive was in perfect shape and steaming. AAAAND it wasn’t one of those small narrow gauge types of locomotives but a big, normal one.

0186 Steam engine, built in 1925 by Henschel and Son.

So here we go. As we pass the tall bridge, we have another huge construction on the river, which is a lock that raises or lowers boats up the river. Because there are many trees, I could not get a good picture of it But it is the best part of going up the river on boat… so I was told. Basically I am not a huge fan of boats, but this has to be the coolest experience that show that when Humans get smart, what they can achieve wonders.

Then we get some bottles of cold water and also a small plastic glass with Porto Wine from the crew. It is a very strong wine, very sweet and has lots of taste. But is so strong, that I don’t really get it why is it named a “wine”. But since I am not an expert in such thing, I just enjoyed the treat

Now, between Regua and the first stop, Pinhao, I noticed there are a lot of predator birds, that most of them, sit on the side of the river, where the train passes. Basically, if you have a 300mm minimum zoom on you, you can get pretty awesome bird shots.

I bought here in Spain a bird book, so I looked at eagles chapter, and by the look of its tail, I would say that it looks like Milano Negro that I believe is a Short Eagle in english. Anyway, googled in Spanish and seems right, then in english and I had all sorts of results…

Moving on, we reach Pinhao, but we don’t stay too much, so we head towards Tua. All the beauty of the trip stays in the man-made landscape with different wine production houses, vineyards, sand, dust and the river.

At Tua, we get the opportunity to taste some of the delicacies that are produced in the area, such as cheese, meat, wine and bread. Who doesn’t want that, there is a Lays and Coke shop just next to the train station. (great place to treat yourself with some ice-cream too).

Personally, I loved more the carriages of the small diesel locomotive than the ones our train was pulling. Of course ours had more historical meaning to them, but those on the picture above, seemed more happy and spacious.

Talking about happy carriages, there are some sitting in a shed, and giving shelter to swallows birds. Imagine owning these wagons, and having them at your house… They would shelter people and cocktails… but not dust and birds…

On my way back, I stood a bit on the other side of the carriage (not just the river side) and I was doing that just in time to catch this view with the dam in construction.

I believe this is how they build the floors on which they put the seeds of the grapes… Vineyard in the making, fauna in destruction.

I have never seen in a small place, so many high voltage posts. I gave the photo a vintage look so that the eye can focus more on the Hi-voltage posts than the never-ending green and sand that vineyards are.

Should I do again this trip? Yes, if they make a sunset edition, not just mid-day!

So here we go back to Braga, but this time through the shockingly good-looking Ermesinde train station.

Here is a bird admiring the sunset from the stations roof.

This whole trip was beautiful, and rich in moments that just 60 pictures could not show it. I have never been in a steam train before, never stood outside while the train was rushing and yeah, never stood outside while in a rail tunnel.

Never seen so many vineyards, and even if I did… not so many on high hills anyway. They were everywhere while looking at 360. And just like I said, not only at the journey Regua-Tua, but also from Porto to Regua you see the same thing.

I have a tip thou. Come prepared for lots of train, and if you are into photography, get a big zoom with you. There are eagles!

MiDe.

]]>https://colorpixel.org/2017/07/02/regua-tua-pt-beautifully-back-in-time/feed/0edited-8336_Fotorcolorpixelorgbunch-of-grapesCaptură de ecran din 2017.07.15 la 20.50.37edited-7972_Fotoredited-7983_Fotoredited-7993_Fotoredited-7986_Fotoredited-8005_Fotoredited-8023_Fotoredited-8057_Fotoredited-8033_Fotoredited-8038_Fotoredited-8047_Fotoredited-8062_Fotoredited-8007_Fotoredited-8009_Fotoredited-8011_Fotoredited-8013_Fotoredited-8072_Fotoredited-8077_Fotoredited-8084_Fotoredited-8109_Fotoredited-8110_Fotoredited-8125_Fotoredited-8135_Fotoredited-8144_Fotoredited-8168_Fotoredited-8204_Fotoredited-8229_Fotoredited-8236_Fotoredited-8270_Fotoredited-8294_Fotoredited-8312_Fotoredited-8318_Fotoredited-8332_Fotoredited-8336_Fotoredited-8346_Fotoredited-8378_Fotoredited-8383_Fotoredited-8398_Fotoredited-8413_Fotoredited-8427_Fotoredited-8433_Fotoredited-8458_Fotoredited-8475_Fotoredited-8481_Fotoredited-8486_Fotoredited-8502_Fotoredited-8506_Fotoredited-8525_Fotoredited-8601_Fotoredited-8613_Fotoredited-8622_Fotoredited-8629_Fotoredited-8647_Fotoredited-8649_Fotoredited-8664_Fotoredited-8672_Fotoredited-8693_Fotoredited-8695_Fotoredited-8702_Fotoredited-8710_Fotoredited-8725_FotorPart 3. A Guarda – Castro de Santa Tecla – EShttps://colorpixel.org/2017/06/24/part-3-a-guarda-castro-de-santa-tecla-es/
https://colorpixel.org/2017/06/24/part-3-a-guarda-castro-de-santa-tecla-es/#respondSat, 24 Jun 2017 21:38:31 +0000http://colorpixel.org/?p=1032Continue reading Part 3. A Guarda – Castro de Santa Tecla – ES]]>Just like I said in the previous posts I wanted to see the ruins from A Guarda, when the sun would set down over the ocean. So for that, I checked first on the map (Maps.me) to see where is located the place and then decided how much time I should stay during the wildlife session.

Little I knew that it would be so beautiful. After mesmerizing at the river and the Portuguese border, I started my climb towards the ruins. One day of hiking and climbing with heavy equipment (one telephoto lenses and one fish-eye lens) plus the cold and strong winds ended up in giving me such bad migraines that I could barely stay on my feet.

So my whole idea of making a time-lapse with the sun setting, went down the river. I will come back, in full day, to make photos of the fauna that live in the near region. Perhaps I will also be done in time for the sunset to try again to make my time-lapse.

Meanwhile here are the images:

One thing is bad when having such subjects and that is, you need to make multiple exposures or use gradient filters. I tried with both, but I find the filters to work better in conjunction with polarized ones. So double set-up.

Just by judging the images, you can see that this place is so great, that there is no reason not to visit if you find yourself in the area. But take something on you, because here the wind is very strong…

As a bonus for this post, here is a picture from Vigo, before going on the big trip.

MiDe.

]]>https://colorpixel.org/2017/06/24/part-3-a-guarda-castro-de-santa-tecla-es/feed/0edited-7698_Fotorcolorpixelorgruins.pngCaptură de ecran din 2017.06.28 la 22.24.21.pngedited-7619_Fotoredited-7627_Fotoredited-7636_Fotoredited-7644_Fotoredited-7650_Fotoredited-7667_Fotoredited-7676_Fotoredited-7691_Fotoredited-7695_Fotoredited-7698_Fotoredited-7701_Fotoredited-7717_FotorPart 2. Mougas – A bugs life – EShttps://colorpixel.org/2017/06/24/part-2-mougas-a-bugs-life-es/
https://colorpixel.org/2017/06/24/part-2-mougas-a-bugs-life-es/#respondSat, 24 Jun 2017 12:00:09 +0000http://colorpixel.org/?p=929Continue reading Part 2. Mougas – A bugs life – ES]]>This is the very first time I am buying a lens with the sole purpose of making pictures of wildlife. And for a first trip, I was disappointed… Tamron is not the best and sadly, is not even a good one either. Product it is manufactured in China and with that might scare a few, I didn’t give it too much attention since most things come from there anyway, but now I understand the fear. It has to do with the sharpness. Out of 5 stars, this one has 2, and that only because I like the way I can stabilize my shots even in recording mode.

Going closer to the border with Portugal, by the coast, there is an interesting hiking route, that starts at Mougas and finishes at a waterfall. If you look at where I drew the pinpoint sign, there should be the finish. We started the walk right where is the X on the map.

I took a shortcut and found in just a few minutes my first dragon-fly sitting in the sun. But I had bad time getting more close to it, in order to get the details, so I got a bit upset because of the waste of my money… Now I know that an insane macro lens is better. (but also to expensive for my hobby. best choice is to get a 150-200 euro lens instead of jumping at double…)

Then I got more lucky. I saw a second dragon-fly, and took nice detail shots of the blue wings and head and some with the whole body. For some reason, the insect didn’t want to leave for a good 20 or so minutes. During that time a few butterfly flew by, so I started to make photos of those too and came back to greenly.

Here are some photos of that trip:

Seeing life so close, made me wonder how can I get even more in detail. And all of a sudden, I started to see mini-world in every place I was pointing my camera. Such example is the next image, where I imagined a view from a plane, over a forest, near a lake and wet sand:

Next one, looks more like a tree-creature that looks down to his kinds, hiding under the green plant. A playing dead tree – how silly it sounds, but does look like that.

A shipyard, that will produce flying vessels, designed to travel the forest, to a new world.

Round houses.

Shy flower.

The main attractions in the area, are the two waterfalls that are interesting, no doubt. One at middle distance, and the other one, at destination.

Other honorable mentions are the appearance of horses on the track, and also people who were enjoying a horseback ride.

My luck was solid for I found another dragon-fly that stood so much in one place (a good 2 minutes, before flying away) that I could even record it.

The magnificent view from the forest, towards the sea:

Last encounter, was a small lizard, for which I waited many minutes, first to make pictures and then to film it. Apearently it had a bee in his mouth and perhaps it wanted to leave it in another place. But at more than 3 meters from her, were two humans pointing black objects towards and they were not moving

After getting a few seconds of footage here are the results:

MiDe.

]]>https://colorpixel.org/2017/06/24/part-2-mougas-a-bugs-life-es/feed/0edited-7364_FotorcolorpixelorgdragonflyCaptură de ecran din 2017.06.25 la 23.04.36edited-7327_Fotoredited-7329_Fotoredited-7364_Fotoredited-7365_Fotoredited-7374_Fotoredited-7394_Fotoredited-7382_Fotoredited-7403_Fotoredited-7397_Fotoredited-7412_Fotoredited-7419_Fotoredited-7424_Fotoredited-7613_Fotoredited-7444_Fotoredited-7530_Fotoredited-7535_Fotoredited-7496_Fotoredited-_Fotoredited-7476_Fotoredited-7525_Fotoredited-7524_Fotoredited-7528_Fotoredited-7436_FotorgMougasPart 1 – Moulin, Mill, Moara, Muino – EShttps://colorpixel.org/2017/06/24/part-1-moulin-mill-moara-muino-es/
https://colorpixel.org/2017/06/24/part-1-moulin-mill-moara-muino-es/#respondSat, 24 Jun 2017 08:55:49 +0000http://colorpixel.org/?p=1089Continue reading Part 1 – Moulin, Mill, Moara, Muino – ES]]>My childhood dream was and still is to make images and short films about nature and it’s many faces. Now of course I don’t have money for the perfect gear, nor to get to the richest places in beauty but I start from somewhere to get experience.

My first camera was a point and shoot film camera (Fujifilm) and I would make photos at countryside with subjects like nature, trains, animals and bugs.

Then I had another FujiFilm that I used to make short clips and then many years after, while been sent here in Spain to work, I bought my first DSLR.

Since now I am in this European paradise (away from the traumas of the world) where just beer, beaches and soccer counts, I decided it is the perfect place to make some pictures of wildlife and relive the joy of my childhood. So far I saw some interesting birds in Portugal (Sintra) and a few insects here and there, oh, and a rabbit and three foxes in the woods.

So I went on Amazon.es and bought the not so really cheap Tamron SP AF 70-300 F/4-5.6 Di VC USD. It is a bla bla bla heavy made in China full frame lens that you cannot really use at 300mm so well, but with practice, I think I will get beautiful results (and I did). With this and my camera and a bottle of water I planned a trip: To A Guarda and hicking.

On road to the closest waterfall to Vigo, in direction of A Guarda, I came across a Wind Mill. You will find it either by looking very carefully at the coast, or by seeing these two: A giant stone on top of a pillar, that looks just like a nose and if you don’t spot this one, there is also a tasteless looking yellow building that you will see it for sure.

Here is a parking, and from here there is a few minutes (not more than 5 if you don’t stop for pictures) to a camping site where the wind mill is located.

I would definitely camp here. It has everything as sports activities go (tennis, soccer, pool, etc.) supermarket and the view! Wow the view!

Did not stay much, since my goal was to test the lenses and also catch the sunset at A Guarda, so go, check those out!

MiDe.

]]>https://colorpixel.org/2017/06/24/part-1-moulin-mill-moara-muino-es/feed/0edited-7312_Fotorcolorpixelorgwind-millCaptură de ecran din 2017.07.01 la 21.17.25edited-7320_Fotoredited-7324_Fotoredited-7315_Fotoredited-7312_Fotoredited-7298_Fotoredited-7288_Fotoredited-7295_Fotoredited-7292_FotorFestas de S. Xoan – Panxon – EShttps://colorpixel.org/2017/06/23/festas-de-s-xoan-panxon-es/
https://colorpixel.org/2017/06/23/festas-de-s-xoan-panxon-es/#respondFri, 23 Jun 2017 16:37:42 +0000http://colorpixel.org/?p=1313Continue reading Festas de S. Xoan – Panxon – ES]]>The celebration of Summer solstice or the Bonfires of St. John. This festive day (or better said, night) it is very common in Spain and Portugal, especially in the coastal cities and towns such as Alicante for Spain and Oporto for Portugal. Much like most ancient celebrations, this also is meant to protect against evil spirits.

The date of this celebration was the 23rd of June, and it starts for me with a question: where I would see the closest big fire? Rumors were that it will take place in Nigran, which is not so far.

First, we stoped to admire the Illas Cies, sundown and a cute cloud formation, that was looking like a family of elephants.

At arrival to Panxon, we are greeted by the Police, telling us that the road is closed so we should park the car some place else. This was the signal that we are in the good place (where lots of people gather).

The first thing I saw (also because it was dark) was the big music scene, performing latino famous hits. People of all ages were dancing in the middle of the crowd, but not like some of us would except (like just jumping or balancing) but actually in pairs. First the old ones gave the tone, then the young ones, and soon most people next to the stage, were dancing.

Then a group of people handing a long stick with a towel made me think that they will be soon lighting up the fire. So I walked in the opposite directions to search for a good spot. Took also a beer, made a few photos of the small fires lid on the beach and waited.

First, there was a fireworks show and then the big fires (because by now, I found out that there were two of them actually)

As gear I used the nifty-fifty 50mm lens from Canon paired with the 80D. This combo allowed me to get great shots (as seen) without much of a problem. On some of them I was actually holding my camera in one hand, since I had a beer on the other one. But there is still an issue about digital cameras. The light from the fire vs the crowd. The beach and the ocean are almost invisible in most shots I made.

Fireworks are also a hard subjects, and the iPhone was a bit better in terms of colors but not in details.

Well this event is sure thing interesting and as campfires are, this is the biggest one I saw yet, but it sure ain’t the smartest humans came up with (burning a huge number of dead branches and plastic bottles) but it brings up people and gives kids a new thing to do: dig a whole, put wood and light’em up!

MiDe.

]]>https://colorpixel.org/2017/06/23/festas-de-s-xoan-panxon-es/feed/0edited-7068_Fotorcolorpixelorgfire-placeCaptură de ecran din 2017.07.09 la 17.40.07edited-6950_Fotoredited-6954_Fotoredited-6955_Fotoredited-6970_Fotoredited-6973_Fotoredited-7078_Fotoredited-7041_Fotoredited-7068_Fotoredited-7093_Fotoredited-7102_Fotoredited-7232_FotorPonte de Lima – PThttps://colorpixel.org/2017/06/18/ponte-de-lima-pt/
https://colorpixel.org/2017/06/18/ponte-de-lima-pt/#respondSun, 18 Jun 2017 18:35:30 +0000http://colorpixel.org/?p=782Continue reading Ponte de Lima – PT]]>The romans in Portugal. I have passed by this town so many times, but never stopped to visit it. Now I did, more or less because it was 2 hours before sunset, so I could benefit from the warm color tones.

This town is very close to the border between Galicia (Spain) and Portugal and if you travel by car on the highway, you can miss it, because the road is quite far from the attractions.

Depending on the travelers itinerary, this place could be interesting or not. I say that a 3 hours of stay should be enough. Locals speak very well either english or french, so having a dinner just the way you like it, shouldn’t be a problem if you don’t know portuguese or spanish.

Also there are museums and some of them guarded during the weekend by cats such as this one:

There is also this palace type house: Villa Belmira which is probably the best place in town to stay. It also remembers of the Sintra castles. I for one like it, but I have not stayed here ,yet.

Right outside of the streets, next to the Lima river, there is this magnificent and medieval tower named Torre da Cadeia Velha with lots of birds flying around it.

Of course the main atraction is the roman bridge across the Lima River. Around it are large wild ducks families, that are not to afraid of visitors.

As most places here on Iberia, night shines more alive than daylight, with many places to relax and drink the famous Porto wine.

MiDe.

]]>https://colorpixel.org/2017/06/18/ponte-de-lima-pt/feed/0edited-6333_Fotorcolorpixelorgbridge-2.pngCaptură de ecran din 2017.06.18 la 20.04.39.pngedited-6221_Fotoredited-6223_Fotoredited-6225_Fotoredited-6236_Fotoredited-6240_Fotoredited-6246_Fotoredited-6247_Fotoredited-6254_Fotoredited-6271_Fotoredited-6272_Fotoredited-6278_Fotoredited-6286_Fotorwedited-6301_Fotoredited-6294_Fotor.jpgedited-6306_Fotoredited-6307_Fotoredited-6333_Fotoredited-6350_Fotoredited-6363_Fotoredited-6375_Fotoredited-6423_Fotoredited-6432_Fotoredited-6445_Fotoredited-6497_FotorMircea in Galicia – EShttps://colorpixel.org/2017/06/12/mircea-in-galicia-es/
https://colorpixel.org/2017/06/12/mircea-in-galicia-es/#respondMon, 12 Jun 2017 21:22:02 +0000http://colorpixel.org/?p=845Continue reading Mircea in Galicia – ES]]>As I was eating my burger waiting for my friends to go for a swim, I saw a sail ship. And not just any sail ship, but a big and white one. So I went home and took my camera and came back. Found a high point and started making a few shots. Then I noticed my Romanian Flag on the ship. I thought it could be coming from my country, but I better check it out!

Sadly I could not get more near to it because of the fence that was just between me and the grand ship. I saluted the sailors on board, in Romanian, but I think they did not hear me. Here are some closeup images:

So as the sun was setting down, I went back up, on top of Media Market to wait for the perfect shot.